Swimming Pool Scene HOTEL POOLS
Everything is Bigger In Texas!
The Marriott Marquis Houston was one of the many projects in Houston rushing to open before the 2017 Superbowl. Not only was the hotel faced with a tight timeframe for construction, but the owners also had big plans for a highly complex and specialised rooftop lazy river. Natare Corporation’s glowing reputation in the hotel pool industry made it an easy choice for the Marriott hotel owners when deciding who to trust. The specialty swimming pools were the crowning jewel on this $335-million-dollar project designed by Morris Architects of Houston.
The project included a 550ft long ‘lazy river’ in the shape
of Texas. Water jets propel swimmers around on inflatable tubes. When swimmers are quickly approaching the western tip of the Texas map, they will be thrilled to see a clear, acrylic wall overlooking the roof’s edge before water jets shoot them southeast along the path of the Rio Grande. In the centre of the Texas lazy river, children are able to play in the water features of a circular splash pad, 20ft in diameter. The stainless steel ‘bowl’ of the splash pad was lined with stones, through which water drains back to the filtration system. Along the edge of the same rooftop is an impressive 77ft long infinity pool, where swimmers
of the leisure club at their individual property and look after the day-to-day pool plant operations. They also have a separate company called H20 Chemicals, who conduct the bacteriological testing and Kingfisher Poolcare who are the nominated pool plant servicing contractor.
Says Justin: “Our biggest overheads are our staffing and utilities, as is true for the majority of pool operators. “We have no plans to build any new facilities in the near future - most of our facility upgrades that we have planned came about through the natural deterioration of facilities and pool plants over time. Our schedule of capital investment is therefore very much focused on maintaining what we have to a high standard.”
NEW LIFE Recently, Kew Green Hotels replaced in full the filtration and disinfection systems together with new balance tanks, full pool-side re-tiling and pipework at the Holiday Inn Rochester-Chatham leisure club. Similarly, at the Holiday Inn Cardiff-North the pool plant is entirely new and the Holiday Inn Leeds-Brighouse pool has been fully re-tiled.
“One thing we are mindful of is striking a balance between providing appropriate facilities for hotel guests and members,” Justin comments. “It is not true of all, but guests often want a more relaxing and family orientated environment, while many of the members use the facilities for health and fitness purposes. I previously worked in Local Authority leisure centres and there was always a balance which
ABOVE: Natare Corporation has been selected to provide the stainless steel specialty pools and spa located on the rooftop of the new rooftop of the hotel that opened last September.
can relax and look out over the Houston skyline and Houston’s Discovery Green below.
The pools were water-tested for a leak-proof finish to withstand decades or use. A large crane lifted the 90,716 kgs of stainless steel pool in pieces and lowered the awesome jigsaw puzzle into place on the rooftop of this big Texas hotel.
had to be struck between meeting the needs of the various users groups such as local residents, schools, swimming clubs etc.”
WELLNESS EXPERIENCE
These days swimming pools figure as part of a larger wellness offering that will invariably include sauna and steam but also mood treatment rooms and therapy experiences. Natare has designed, built and installed some of the most impressive and awe-inspiring resort pools in the world. They have also amassed an enviable track record working with many hotels to cut costs and increase profits simply by restoring an ageing pool or building a spectacular new one. Natare pools are fully customisable, featuring a wide range of
shapes, sizes and configurations to accommodate fast, all-welded or bolted pool construction for a pool that is on time, and on budget. Swimming pools offer maximum pulling power for modern
hotels,” advises Mark Watson of Wrightfield Pools, the UK distributors of the Natare design and build system.
“If you disappoint with an inferior pool, the likelihood of a return visit is diminished,” advises Mark. “If you offer the wow factor, not only will they be back but their friends will be too.” Commonly viewed as money pits, a good hotel pool can be the star attraction. Good design that embraces modern build techniques and new technology has a major role to play in improving energy efficiency and cutting running costs. Variable speed control of pumps and intelligent environmental control systems will make huge differences in running costs. While the correct choices in
Swimming Pool Scene HOTEL POOLS 45
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